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The U.S. government is not meeting its obligations under international law to ensure respect for the rights of immigrants regardless of their legal status, Amnesty International USA says in a report released Wednesday.

The document, In Hostile Terrain: Human Rights Violations in Immigration Enforcement in the U.S. Southwest, contends that federal, state and local authorities are failing to enforce immigration law in a non-discriminatory way.

“All immigrants, irrespective of their legal status, have human rights. This report shows that the U.S.A. is failing in its obligations under international law to ensure these rights,” AIUSA says.

The study cites U.S. government estimates that between 14,500 and 17,500 people are smuggled into the country every year for purposes of sexual or labor exploitation.

While U.S. law authorizes the granting of visas to undocumented migrants who are victims of human trafficking and other crimes, the report found that “immigrants are often fearful of reporting crimes committed against them, because interaction with the police may result in immigration enforcement actions against themselves or others in their household.”

Only 6 percent of the 5,000 visas annually available for survivors of human trafficking are issued, according to AIUSA.

Prevailing negative attitudes about immigration have created “a perfect storm” in which undocumented survivors of human trafficking, domestic abuse and other crimes are increasingly seen as criminals rather than victims, the report’s lead author, Justin Mazzola, said.

AIUSA also faults the federal government for border enforcement measures said to put migrants’ lives at greater risk.

“Recent immigration policy in certain border areas has pushed undocumented immigrants into using dangerous routes through the US desert; hundreds of people die each year as a result,” the organization says.

Nearly 5,300 people died between 1998 and 2008 while trying to enter the U.S. from Mexico.

Among its recommendations, AIUSA urges the U.S. government to suspend all immigration enforcement programs “pending a review by the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General to determine whether the programs can be implemented in a non-discriminatory manner.”

The organization also calls on Washington to ensure “that border policies respect and protect the right to life.”

Pay below the national average persists among the majority of Latino women, who earn, on average, 40 percent less than white non-Hispanic men, according to the Labor Council for Latin American Advancement.

The LCLAA, which represents 2 million Latino union members, presented a report stating that Hispanic males also earn less than their Anglo and African-American peers.

Specifically, women of Hispanic origin in 2010 earned an average of $508 per week, compared with $592 for black women and $684 for white-non-Hispanic females.

“Sixty-five percent of the Latino women in this country only have a middle school education or less, and the level of education defines in large part the opportunities that a woman can take advantage of in the labor market,” Andrea Delgado, one of the authors of the report, told Efe.

Delgado said that the majority of Hispanic women work in businesses linked to retail sales, food preparation, cleaning houses and buildings, health assistance and childcare, among others.

“They are jobs in which a Latina doesn’t earn enough to support a family and get ahead,” Delgado said.

The LCLAA study sees the Latino woman as being more vulnerable to suffering attacks on her rights at work, at the same time that she is less able to complain about them.

“If a Latina doesn’t speak the language or is a person who recently came to the country, if in general she doesn’t know about her labor rights, she will not know how to identify if she is suffering sexual harassment at work or salary theft,” Delgado said.

A better level of education is seen as the solution to getting better pay.

Another of the matters that concerns the researchers is health: the percentage of Latino women without medical insurance, 29.1 percent, is more than twice that among white non-Hispanic women.

Among the policy priorities, the report recommends increasing the budgets for agencies that make labor inspections, guaranteeing pay for sick days, promoting immigration reform and improving access to medical care.

LCLAA executive director Hector Sanchez emphasized to Efe the inequalities that persist among the Hispanic female population and urged “getting rid of extremism in the country, which is affecting whole communities and particularly Latino women.”

Venezuelan-born special effects wizard Tulio Hernandez has been part of some of Hollywood’s biggest blockbusters.

He has worked on “Avatar,” “Spider-Man 2,” “X-Men Origins: Wolverine,” and “Night at the Museum,” among many others.

“But what marked my path was the film ‘Komodo,’ in 1999, when I saw my name on the credits and felt I had made the right decisions in my life,” Hernandez, 50, said in an interview with Efe.

He came to the United States in 1978 from his native Maracaibo with plans to attend college and ultimately graduated with a degree in tourism and hospitality.

“In 1988,” he recounted, “a friend wanted to open a vegetarian restaurant. He asked me to help him, but this friend was also making a movie and seeing them work I felt as if someone had hit me on the head and I said: this is what I want to do.”

“My vision of reality is quite particular. I always see it with visual effects, I look at the environment and think how to put it on the computer,” Hernandez said, “Being Venezuelan, the Latin touch is in everything I do.”

Gucci has taken inspiration from Brazil’s Pantanal tropical wetlands with its latest collection.

With bright color, foliage and macaws adorning the luxury brand’s new limited accessories collection, one will certainly standout with these.

As with all Gucci products, these accessories come with a hefty price tag. The larger of the two totes offered in the collection, the Sacca GG Plus carry-on, will set you back $1785, while the Joy handbag is a mere $1157. The silk scarves round out the collection and cost just under $292.

The collection now be found at the Gucci’s new store in the Cidade Jardim mall in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Though no official communication between Real Madrid and Chelsea has been made regarding the Portuguese striker, the UK news source has stated that should Chelsea make a play for Ronaldo, it will like include his teammate Gonzalo Higuain.

A bid for both players would likely cost the London team around $133 million. In 2009, Madrid paid Manchester United $120 million for Ronaldo and his performance tends to justify his cost.

Despite his performance for Real Madrid, Ronaldo does face his share of controversy. During his time with Real, Ronaldo has butt heads with some of the team’s Spanish players and even with the club supporters, meaning he could feel a bit of a push to leave Madrid.

On Sunday, the 27-year-old became the fastest player to reach 100 goals in Spanish league history. He is currently tied with 24-year-old Leo Messi (Barcelona) with 35 goals for the season.

Okay, so we’ve likely all had at least one moment in our lives when we just cannot bring ourselves to cook, but also don’t want to, or simply can’t go grab something quick. One tech company has a solution, well for those in the San Francisco area anyway.

An unmanned drone aptly named the TacoCopter has been created by a Silicon Valley startup co-founded by Dustin Boyer, Star Simpson, and Scott Torborg. However, while the demand is there – who wouldn’t want tacos delivered by a freaking UAV? – one little thing is standing in their way. The U.S. government, more specifically the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration.

Current U.S. FAA regulations prevent ... using UAVs [Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, like drones] for commercial purposes at the moment. Honestly I think it’s not totally unreasonable to regulate something as potentially dangerous as having flying robots slinging tacos over people’s heads ... [O]n the other hand, it’s a little bit ironic that that’s the case in a country where you can be killed by drone with no judicial review.

So what do you think? Do you think the TacoCopter could one day actually be put into business? Would you sign a petition to urge the FAA to let it fly?

David Gonzalez and other passengers encountered something they never expected on a routine flight from New York to Las Vegas – a crazed pilot, their pilot.

The Jetblue captain was running up the aisle after exiting the back bathroom. The fact that the pilot was using the bathroom in the back was the first indication that something was off.

The pilot exited screaming and appeared to be overly agitated. He screamed about bombs, the state of affairs in the Middle East and that the plane would be going down.

Gonzalez and others subdued the captain while the co-pilot secured the cock pit and made an emergency landing at the Rick Husband Amarillo International Airport, approximately 2 hours into the flight.

The Jetblue pilot has been identified as 12-year veteran Clayton Frederick Obon of Richmond Hills, Georgia. Another pilot who was a passenger was called upon to help the co-pilot fly the plane. The co-pilot quick thinking according to some reports disabled the Jetblue Captain’s security code and the intercom.

David Gonzalez, 50, of New York was enroute to Las Vegas, as many other passengers were, to a security convention. Gonzalez appeared to be the first to take the Captain down and then others came to help him.

After photos of New Jersey state troopers posing with seized drugs while holding the Puerto Rican flag surfaced, many are demanding to know why the apparently racist photos were taken and what was meant by the inclusion of the flag.

The people of the South Jersey town of Camden are demanding to know the meaning behind the photos said to have been taken after a drug raid in 2009.

As is the case after most large seizures, photos of the confiscated drugs and weapons were taken. However, two photos clearly stand out from the rest.

As officers likely involved in the raid pose next to the drugs, in two separate photos, a man holds the flag of Puerto Rico while smiling.

Those who have examined the photos say the flag holder does not appear to be Puerto Rican so holding the flag in a prideful manner does not seem to fit.

Former mayoral candidate Angel Cordero told Fox New Philly, ‘You are saying my community. … We are all criminals. You are saying my community is the drug dealers. My community is responsible for all the crime. You are sending a message that we are all criminals.”

A statement from the New Jersey state police stated that the images have been referred to the Office of Professional Standards to determine their context and meaning.

Camden, NJ has a large Hispanic community so it is no wonder many were upset to learn of the photos’ existence.

CREW, which claims the reimbursements undermine public trust, named Rep. Reyes (D-TX) as the representative with the most reimbursements to himself and members of his family.

According to CREW’s report titled Family Affair, Reyes’ campaign committee reimbursed him more than $261,000 between his 2008 and 2010 campaigns.

Family members were paid as follows:

-Veronica Cintron (niece): $318,675 for various services throughout the campaigns
-Jesus Reyes (brother): $3185 for campaign fundraising services and operating costs
-Martha “Marty” Reyes (sister-in-law): $1000 donation for her school board campaign in the Ysleta Independent School District
-Guillermo “Willie” Cintron (relationship unknown): paid $15,500 for working as Rep. Reyes’ leadership PAC treasurer

In total, Reyes’ campaign paid his family $338,360, That, totaled with what Reyes himself was paid, is just over $600,000 of campaign money that went straight back into him own family.

However, CREW’s study found that the eight-term member of Congress who represents Texas’ 16th congressional district is only one of “248 House members used their positions to financially benefit themselves or family members.”

This report shows lawmakers still haven’t learned it is wrong to trade on their positions as elected leaders to benefit themselves and their families,” said CREW Executive Director Melanie Sloan. “Conduct like this reinforces the widely held view that members of Congress are more interested in enriching themselves than in public service. Family Affair highlights these practices.”

Several men have been arrested and charged in a conspiracy related to drug trafficking and/or an attempted murder-for-hire plot two of which are US Military.

The investigation began in January 2011, when Mickle began negotiations with whom he thought were members of the Los Zetas Cartel, actually undercover Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agents, to purchase marijuana in return for stolen weapons. The criminal complaint indicates that as they began discussions about the distribution of marijuana in the Columbia, S.C., area, Mickle and Epps allegedly told undercover agents about a friend in the military who could provide military weapons to them. The agents were later introduced to Corley who allegedly identified himself as an active duty officer in the Army responsible for training soldiers. He offered to provide tactical training for cartel members and to purchase weapons for the cartel under his name.

The complaint states that over the next several months, Army 1st Lt. Kevin Corley continued to communicate with undercover agents regarding the services he could provide the cartel as a result of the training, experience and access to information/equipment afforded him as an active duty soldier. According to the criminal complaint, Corley allegedly mailed an Army tactics battle book to the agents, thoroughly explained military tactics and told undercover agents he could train 40 cartel members in two weeks.

On Jan. 7, 2012, Army 1st Lt. Corley traveled to Laredo and met with undercover agents at which time the agents inquired about his ability to perform “wet work,” allegedly understood to mean murder-for-hire, specifically, whether he could provide a team to raid a ranch were 20 kilograms of stolen cocaine were being kept by rival cartel members. Corley confirmed he would conduct the contract killing with a small team, at a minimum comprised of himself and another person who he described as an active duty soldier with whom he had already consulted. According to the complaint, Corley ultimately agreed to $50,000 and five kilograms of cocaine to perform the contract killing and retrieve the 20 kilograms of cocaine and offered to refund the money if the victim survived.

Army 1st Lt.Corley further offered to provide security for Mickle and Epps’ purchase of 500 pounds of marijuana for transport from Texas to South Carolina. He traveled with them to Laredo, where they loaded the marijuana into a tractor trailer and attempted to escort it back to South Carolina. However, the tractor-trailer carrying the load was stopped and seized in La Salle County, Texas, on Jan. 14, 2012. Corley continued to contact undercover agents to discuss the possibility of future transactions with the agents, according to the complaint. Corley allegedly arranged for 300 pounds of marijuana to be delivered to Mario Corley in Charleston, S.C., and allegedly assisted in brokering 500 pounds of marijuana and five kilograms of cocaine for Mickle and Epps and discussed the distribution of these narcotics in South Carolina, Texas and Colorado.

On March 5, 2012, Army 1st Lt.Corley delivered two AR-15 assault rifles with scopes, an airsoft assault rifle, five allegedly stolen ballistic vests and other miscellaneous equipment to an undercover agent in Colorado Springs, Colo., in exchange for $10,000. At the meeting, Army 1st Lt.Corley and the undercover agent allegedly again discussed the contract killing and the retrieval of the cocaine which was to occur on March 24, 2012. Corley allegedly stated he had purchased a new Ka-Bar knife to carve a “Z” into the victim’s chest and was planning on buying a hatchet to dismember the body.

On March 24, 2012, Army 1st Lt. Corley, Sgt. Samuel Walker, and Davis traveled to Laredo and met with undercover agents, at which time they discussed the location of the intended victim, the logistics of performing the contract kill and their respective roles. The three were arrested, during which time a fourth suspect was shot and killed. A subsequent search of the vehicle in which Corley and the other co-conspirators arrived revealed two semi-automatic rifles with scopes, one bolt-action rifle with a scope and bipod, one hatchet, one Ka-Bar knife, one bag of .223 caliber ammunition and one box of .300 caliber ammunition.

The criminal complaint charges conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine and carries a possible punishment of a minimum of 10 years and up to life in prison and/or an $10 million fine. Use of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking or violent crime could result in up to 10 years in prison which is served consecutively to any other prison term imposed. Those charged in the indictment for conspiracy and possession with intent to distribute more than 100 kilograms of marijuana, including Corley, Mickle and Epps, also face five to 40 years in prison if convicted.

Army 1st Lt. Corley, Sgt. Samuel Walker and Davis are set for a detention hearing on Mar. 29, 2012, at 10:00 a.m. before Judge Song Quiroga. They were all remanded to federal custody pending further criminal proceedings.

The investigation leading to the charges was conducted by the DEA and the FBI with the assistance of U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Roberto Ramirez and Jody Young.

Earlier this year, it was announced that Selena Gomez was taking Miley Cyrus’ place as the voice of Dracula’s daughter in the animated flick Hotel Transylvania.

Gomez’s character Mavis is pursued by Simon Van Helsing, whose descendants have been monster hunters for generations. The movie follows the lovebirds as they try to bring peace to humans and monsters.

The Hotel Transylvania is run by Dracula and is a place where monsters and their families are free to be the monsters they are without having to worry about being bothered by humans. For a special event, Dracula invites some of the world’s most famous monsters, including the Mummy, the Invisible Man, Frankenstein and his bride, and even a family of werewolves.

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Under Secretary of State for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights María Otero is traveling to El Salvador March 26-28 and to Belize March 28-29.

During her trip, Under Secretary Otero will engage on a variety of themes, including citizen security, community policing, youth, social inclusion, trafficking in persons, and financial inclusion. Under Secretary Otero’s visit will highlight U.S. partnership with El Salvador and Belize to improve citizen security in Central America.

In El Salvador, she will meet with senior government officials, business leaders, civil society representatives, and youth to address a number of issues under the Partnership for Growth, including citizen security, social inclusion, and community policing. She will also visit a school, tour a police precinct, and participate in a ceremony in honor of the donation of computer equipment and vehicles to the National Civilian Police.

While in Belize, Under Secretary Otero will engage in bilateral discussions with senior government officials on citizen security, trafficking in persons, and financial inclusion, and, in addition, will meet with civil society leaders.

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and Mexican Attorney General Marisela Morales Ibáñez today signed a letter of intent for the United States to share approximately $6 million in forfeited funds to support Mexican efforts to combat the financial infrastructure of organized criminal groups.

In January 2008, Sigue entered into a deferred prosecution agreement with the Department of Justice on charges of failing to maintain an effective anti-money laundering program. As a result, Sigue forfeited $15 million to the United States and agreed to commit an additional $9.7 million to improving its anti-money laundering program.

This initiative is designed to complement ongoing bilateral efforts to increase pressure on the economic resources of the criminal organizations that operate in Mexico and along the U.S./Mexico border.

The case, filed in the Eastern District of Missouri, arose out of transactions conducted by Sigue and its authorized agents from November 2003 through March 2005. During this time, more than $24.7 million in suspicious transactions were conducted through registered agents of Sigue, including transactions conducted by undercover U.S. law enforcement agents using funds represented to be proceeds of drug trafficking.

Republican leaders in the U.S. Senate are preparing a watered-down version of the DREAM Act to legalize undocumented students as a type of “lure” to capture the Hispanic vote in November.

Although no details of the prospective bill have filtered out, Sen. Marco Rubio is working along with other Republican on an “alternative version” of the DREAM Act, which became stalled in the Senate in 2010.

Rubio told the daily The Hill that for now there is nothing new to announce but that his goal is to arrive at a “responsible” solution to the presence of undocumented immigrants in the United States and announce it “quickly.”

In remarks to Efe, a spokesman for Rubio, Alex Burgos, said Tuesday that the Florida senator “wants to help these young people and do it in a more limited way than the DREAM Act would do.”

“He will continue working with his colleagues to achieve a bipartisan solution,” Burgos added.

Rubio said in a March 1 interview with Efe that he is maintaining his commitment to achieving a bipartisan solution to illegal immigration.

Among the possible ideas he is weighing, he said at that time, is creating “a student visa so that they can stay to finish their studies until they can apply legally.”

Without citing any names, Rubio also complained that some politicians, instead of conducting a bipartisan dialogue, are only seeking to use the problem of undocumented immigrants “as a political weapon in November.”

Citing Senate sources, The Hill said that the proposal, negotiated in secret, will be announced after Mitt Romney secures the Republican president nomination.

It would be, The Hill says, a bill from which both parties would benefit: undocumented students would regularize their immigration status and Republicans would have something tangible to show the Hispanic electorate in November.

Romney, who continues to have a sizable advantage over his rivals in both money and organization, opposes immigration reform that allows the regularization of all undocumented immigrants in the United States, whose numbers are calculated to be more than 11 million.

In January, however, Romney suggested that he would support the legalization of undocumented students who serve in the U.S. military.

In the House of Representatives, Florida Republican David Rivera is promoting the ARMS Act, a type of DREAM Act that only opens the way to legalizing undocumented students who serve in the military.

In addition, Republican Senators Jon Kyl of Arizona and Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas are preparing their own immigration bills, but neither of them has been willing to tell the press anything about them.

In any case, the Republicans are now seeking - as a bloc - to resuscitate measures to provide immigration relief for undocumented foreigners in the midst of an election year and this is raising suspicions both among pro-reform groups and Democrats.

In general, the hostile stance of conservatives against undocumented immigrants has hurt the image of the Republican Party with the immigrant community and, in fact, the party has lost ground among Latino voters, according to several surveys.

The leader of the Democratic majority in the Senate, Harry Reid, warned during a meeting with Latino businessmen last week against any Republican “decoy” that would dilute the DREAM Act.

The reality is that both parties have to do something substantial, and very soon, to recover the confidence of Latino voters. If not, that group is certain to make them pay at the polls.

The opposition Cuban Commission for Human Rights and National Reconciliation, or CCDHRN, on Tuesday said that the number of dissidents arrested in connection with this week’s papal visit to the Communist-ruled island exceeds 150 and it fears that the number of arrests will mount.

“We deduce that the detentions will continue increasing between today, Tuesday, and tomorrow ... mainly in Havana and neighboring provinces, due to the presence of Benedict XVI in the western region and the Mass he will offer tomorrow (Wednesday) in Cuba’s main and largest square,” the commission said.

In a communique the commission said that the government’s repressive measures surrounding the papal visit have included blocking the telephone connections of several hundred dissidents, independent journalists and critical bloggers.

It also said that some 200 Cubans critical of the regime “have been prohibited from attending the public Masses of Pope Benedict XVI.”

In its statement, the CCDHRN demands that the government provide information on the whereabouts of a person arrested Monday in Santiago de Cuba when, before the start of the pope’s Mass in that eastern city, he got through the security cordon and ran several meters (yards) toward the altar shouting slogans such as “down with communism.”

“Up to now, the whereabouts are unknown of that person who demonstrated peacefully in a verbal manner for which he was attacked by unknown individuals dressed in civilian clothes and other para-police elements who beat him violently,” the opposition commission said.

The commission also said that the government has interned between 200 and 300 “beggars ... and other helpless people” so that they will not be seen on the streets during the pontiff’s visit.

The Cuban government, which considers dissidents to be counterrevolutionaries and mercenaries in the service of the United States, warned on the eve of the pope’s arrival that those who attempt “to obstruct this apostolic visit with political manipulations ... will fail.”